Brake attachment for trucks.



F. A. GRIBR. BRAKE ATTACHMENT FOR TRUCKS.

APPLICATION FILED THE. 7, 1913. I

1,092,989. Patented Apr. 14, 1914 2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

uni-Mum PLANDGRAPH CO-WASHINGTON. n.c.

tJ'NiTED sTaTns raTnnT enrich.

FREDERICK A. GRIER, 0F SALISBURY, MARYLAND.

BRAKE ATTACHMENT FOR, TRUCKS.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FREDERICK A. GRIER, acitizen of the United States, residing at Salisbury, in the county ofVVicomico and State of Maryland, have invented new and usefulImprovements in Brake Attachments for Trucks, of which the following isa specification.

This invention relates to vehicle brakes and particularly that typeapplicable to baggage trucks, and the primary object of the invention isto provide a baggage or other truck with a particular form of brakedevice or attachment having shoes adjacent to the front wheels of thetruck and controlled, without in the least interfering with the steeringoperations of the truck, through the medium of the draft tongue which ispivoted so as to move up closely to the front portion of the body of thetruck, the brake shoes being applied to the truck wheels when the tongueis pivotally raised or turned upwardly.

The present brake attachment is an improvement on the analogousattachment disclosed in my pending application Serial No. 744,260, filedJanuary 25, 1913, and consists in the construction and arrangement ofthe several parts which will be more fully hereinafter described andclaimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a truck, broken away inpart, and embodying the improved brake device or organization, the saidbrake device or organization being shown in released position relativelyto the front wheels of the truck. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of therunning gear of the truck with a portion of the brake device ororganization shown broken away and a part of the running gear removed,the brake shoes being illustrated out of contact with relation to thefront Wheels of the truck. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section ofthe front portion of a truck showing the draft tongue elevated andillustrating the manner of applying the brake shoes to the front wheelsof the truck. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken in the plane of theline 44, Fig. 3, the front truck wheels being shown in top plan view andone of the said wheels broken away.

The numeral 5 denotes the body or bed of a baggage truck having theusual racks 6 which are ordinarily applied at the front and rear of thetruck body and also provided with running gear comprising frontSpecification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. February 7, 1913.

Patented Apr. 14, 1914. Serial No. 746,944.

and rear axles having thereon pairs of front and rear wheels 7 and 8.The front and rear axles are fixed to the bed or body through the mediumof suitable bolsters as in ordinary baggage truck structures, the frontaxle and wheels 7 being free to be swung under the bed or body eitherfrom the right or left; and projecting forwardly from the front axle andthe bolster thereof are supporting or connecting braces or rods 9 towhich the usual form of metal box, clip or frame 10 is rigidly attached,the tongue 11 being pivoted in the front extremity of the box, clip orframe 10. Thesaid box, clip or frame 10 is formed with a slot 12extending therethrough, and in this slot a brake bar or beam 13 looselyextends and is engaged at its rear side by the forward extremity of aspring 14 seated in the slot, the upper part of the box being open asshown by Fig. 2 and having the usual construction at its front extremityto receive the pivoted extremity of the handle or draft tongue 11. Thespring 14 tends to push the draft bar or beam 13 in a forward direction,and on the opposite ends of said bar or beam, brake shoes 15 are fixedand located adjacent to the front wheels 7. It will therefore be seenthat the box, clip or frame 10 is held in fixed position by the bracesor rods 9 secured to different portions thereof and that the tongue 11moves in the forward extremity of said box, clip or frame and isutilized for operating the brake attachment or organization to apply thebrake shoes in a manner which will be presently explained. By rea son ofthe spring 14 normally forcing the brake bar or beam 13 in a forwarddirection,

the brake shoes 15 will be held out of contact with relation to thewheels 7, and when the brake shoes are applied they are moved toward thetruck wheels 7 against the re sistance of the spring 14.

Suitable bearing brackets 16 are secured to the front axle of the truckand therein the opposite extremities of a rock shaft 17 have bearing. Onthe rock shaft 17 adjacent to the bearing brackets 16 or at any otherpoint that may be desired, bell-crank levers 18 are secured to move withthe shaft, each bell-crank lever having an upper short arm 19 and alower longer arm 20 so that when a pulling tension is exerted 011 thelonger arms 20 the upper arms 19 will be correspond ingly thrown ormoved to draw the chains 22 taut and immediately afiect the brake beamand draw the latter rearwardly together with the brake shoes whichcontact with the wheels. On opposite sides of the box, clip or frame 10,eye-bolts 21 are adjustably mounted in the brake bar or beam 13, andsecured to the said eye-bolts are the forward extremities of chains oranalogous devices 22 which extend rearwardly and are attached to theupper ends of the shorter arms 19 of the bell-crank levers 18.

To the lower ends of the longer arms 20 of the bell crank levers 18 therear ends of chains 23 are attached and are projected forwardly inconverging planes and secured to an eye or other analogous device 24attached to the rear end of the draft tongue 11, as

clearly shown by Figs. 3 and t, and when the said draft tongue is raisedor turned upwardly on its pivot as shown by Fig. 3, the chains oranalogous devices 23 are drawn taut and exert a pulling tension throughthe longer arms 20 of the bell-crank levers and the shorter arms 19 ofthe latter and chains 22 on the draft'bar 13. The parts are soproportioned that when the draft tongue is fully turned up adjacent tothe front end of the body 5 of the truck, the brake shoes 15 will befully applied and positively held against the front wheels 7 of thetruck. When the draft tongue is raised or elevated to apply the brakeshoes to the wheels it may be held up by a suitable securing means, suchas an eye-bolt 25 and a hook or catch 26 respectively attached to thedraft tongue and the front rack 6 of the truck body 5. When the drafttongue is released and lowered to normal position, the chains 23 arecorrespondingly slackened and the bell-crank levers are permitted tomove in such direction as to slacken the upper chains 22, and in view ofthe fact that the spring 14 is exerting a tension on the rear portion ofthe draft bar or beam 13, the latter together with the brake shoes 15will be moved forwardly the moment the rearward pulling tension on thedraft bar or beam is released. The bellcrank levers 18 move uniformly inview of the fact that they are both secured to the rock shaft 17 andconsequently the rearward pulling tension through the chains oranalogous devices 22 on the draft bar or beam 13 is applied equally onopposite sides of the box, clip or frame 10 and the brake shoes 15 areconsequently brought to bear with an even braking contact on the wheels7.

The improved attachment or braking organization may be readily appliedto baggage or other trucks now in use without materially modifying thestructure of the trucks, and it will be understood that by operating thebraking devices the truck may be brought to a positive standstill at anypoint desired and the wheels 7 may be turned either right or left orunder the body 5 and have the brake shoes applied thereto with the sameforce and effect as when the wheels are in normal position. The improvedbraking device or organization will be found exceptionally advantageousin holding the truck in any position desired while loading or unloadingthe same either adjacent to a car or platform or under any otherconditions, and by this means one operator is enabled to readily andpositively control the truck as to its movement.

What is claimed is:

1. In a wheeled truck, the combination with the front wheels having adraft tongue pivotally associated therewith and movable upwardly anddownwardly, of a rigid brake beam loosely supported adjacent to the rearportion of the tongue and having brake shoes on the ends thereof toengage the front wheels of the truck, means for forcing the brake beaminto a normallyforward position, flexible devices attached to the brakebeam on opposite sides of the center of the latter, bell-crank leverssupported by the front running gear of the truck and having upper shortarms and lower longer arms, the said flexible devices being attached tothe upper short arms of the bell-crank levers, and flexible meansattached to the lower longer arms of the bell-crank levers and to therear end of the tongue.

2. In a wheeled truck, the combination with the front wheels and axle,of a frame rigidly secured to the axle, a tongue pivoted to said frame,a rigid brake beam loosely' supported by said frame near the pivotedportion of the tongue and having brake shoes at opposite extremities toengage the front wheels of the truck, flexible means connected to thetongue at opposite sides of the center of the brake beam and also to theaxle and opera-ted by the movement of the tongue for applying the brakeshoes to the front wheels of the truck, and means disposed in the framefor restoring the brake beam and shoes when released to normal position.

3. In a baggage truck having wheels, the combination with the frontwheels and axle of the truck and a pivoted draft tongue associated withthe front wheels, of a rigid brake beam mounted adjacent to said pivotedtongue and having brake shoes at opposite ends to engage the said frontwheels, and flexible devices and levers respectively connected to theaxle and different portions of the draft tongue and operated by the movement. of the tongue to apply the shoes to the front wheels of the truck.

4. In a truck having wheels, the combination with the front axle andwheels and a tongue pivotallyattached to said axle, of a rigid brakebeam loosely supported adjacent to the rear portion of the tongue andhaving brake shoes at opposite ends to engage the front wheels of thetruck, means for moving 7 the brake beam into forward normal positionwhen released, levers attached to the axle, In testimony whereof I havehereunto set and chains connected to the levers and difmy hand inpresence of two subscribing Witferent portions of the brake beam and thenesses.

tongue and operated by the latter to draw FREDERICK A. GRIER. 3 the saidbrake beam in a rearward direction Witnesses:

and apply the shoes to the front Wheels of E. M. NIoHoLs,

the truck. DAVID J. MALONE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

